Thursday, 21 February 2013

The Silver Linings Playbook by Matthew Quick

Although I have heard nothing but good things about the
film, I decided that I wanted to read the book Silver Linings Playbook was based on first. I think most readers
are of a similar opinion; it’s nice to read the book first because then you
have your own ideas about it, rather than a film-maker's.

The Silver Linings
Playbook opens with Pat Peoples leaving a mental institution where he has
been receiving treatment following the breakdown of his marriage. Throughout
the book, which is narrated by Pat, we learn that whilst he thinks he has only
been in the hospital for a couple of months, a few years have actually passed.

Moving back to his parents’ house in Philadelphia, Pat sets
about changing his life. He spends a lot of time working out, and working on a
way to make himself a better person so that ‘apart time’ from his wife, Nikki,
can end, and they can reconcile. Pat also meets Tiffany, a woman who has
suffered from her own mental illness, and the two of them strike up an uncomfortable
friendship.

I read this book in one day, and I’m never sure if this is
such a good thing! It obviously means that it was so entertaining and enjoyable
that I didn’t want to stop reading, but it also makes me wonder at the quality
of the writing. If I take a long time to read something, it’s not necessarily
because I’m not enjoying it, it’s more likely to be because the prose is a bit
more challenging, and takes longer to appreciate.

However, this book gets a big thumbs up from me. The first
person perspective really allows you to understand what Pat is going through as
he attempts to rebuild his life, but at the same time he is observant enough
that the reader is able to pick up on the things that he is struggling to
understand, such as why his mum no longer has his wedding photos displayed in
the house.

If you have read The
Perks of Being a Wallflower, you will spot some similarities here, mainly
due to the fact that both books deal with mental illness, and both are epistolary
(Wallflower is written in the form of
letters and Playbook mainly in the
form of a journal). However The Silver
Linings Playbook is a very adult book, dealing with a man in his thirties
who is trying to adapt to life in a brand new way; rebuilding relationships
with his parents and brother, and re-entering a world that has changed since he
went away.

Now that I’ve read the book, I’m eager to see the film.
Knowing that Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence played the lead roles meant
that reading the book their faces did creep in, but everything else was my own
imagination. I know that the film has changed a few details, but I don’t have
any problem with this; there are various reasons for this happening, and if I’ve
read and enjoyed the book, I’m more than happy for a film-maker to use artistic
licence as they see fit.